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Kate Simpson Hayes
by George J. Dance Kate Simpson Hayes (July 6, 1856 - January 15, 1945) was a Canadian poet and journalist.Hayes, Kate Simpson, Canada's Early Women Writers, Simon Fraser University. Web, Oct. 31, 2016. Life Hayes was born Catherine Ethel Hayes in Dalhousie, New Brunswick. She attended Normal School in Fredericton, New Brunswick. After graduation she taught throughout the maritime provinces. In 1882 she married C. Bowman Simpson, bearing him 2 children, Burke and Elaine (or "Bonnie").Hayes, Kate Simpson (a.k.a Mary Markwell), Heritage & History, City of Regina. Web, Oct. 31, 2016. Her marriage failed in the mid-1880's, and she moved with her 2 children to Saskatchewan, initially to Prince Albert and then to Regina, where she opened a millinery shop and became the organist for the Catholic church. In Regina she met Canadian poet, politician, and newspaper publisher Nicholas Flood Davin and began a 9-year relationship with him, which produced 2 children out of wedlock. Davin repeatedly begged Hayes to divorce her husband and marry him, but she never would. Davin got Hayes the job of librarian for the Saskatchewan legislature, and hired her as the earliest woman reporter on the Regina Leader, where she often wrote umder the pen name "Mary Markwell." She also wrote plays and comedic sketches, which were performed in a number of prairie communities. Her debut colletion, Prairie Pot-Pourri, containing poems, stories, and a children's play, was published in 1895.Constance A. Maguire, Hayes, Kate Simpson, Encyclopedia of the Great Plains. Web, Oct. 31, 2016. In 1900 Hayes moved to Winnipeg, where she edited the women's page of the Manitoba Free Press (later the Winnipeg Free Press) until 1906. She also wrote for the Ottawa Free Press and Vancouver Province. In 1906 she travelled to England, where she worked for the Canadian Pacific Railway, promoting the emigration of women to western Canada. In 1901 Hayes met Davin at the post office in Winnipeg. They quarrelled over the fate of their children. At the end of the conversation she shouted at him, “You go your way and I’ll go mine!” – the last words she ever spoke to him: He committed suicide 2 days later. She was a charter member of the Canadian Women's Press Club in 1904 and served as club president in 1906-1907. Hayes contributed to the Manitoba Free Press until 1909, and during 1910-1911 was women's editor of the Ottawa Free Press. Between 1907 and 1914 she often traveled in England and Ireland. In 1907 she traveled to Rome, where she had a private audience with the Pope. She continued to write until well into her 70's. She died. aged 88, in Victoria, British Columbia.Hayes, Kate Simpson (1856-1845), Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan, University of Regina. Web, Oct. 31, 2016. Recognition Her poetry was included in Songs of the Great Dominion, 1889. 2 of her poems were published as songs: "Two Irish Eyes," with music by Wellington Rawlings, in 1919; and "The Land where the Chinook Calls", with music by Grace McNeil Killoran, 1932. She was made honorary president of the Canadian Women's Press Club in 1932. Publications Poetry *''Derby Day in the Yukon, and other poems of the northland'' (as "Yukon Bill"). Toronto: Musson, 1910. Novel *''The Legend of the West''. Victoria, BC: 1908. Short fiction *''Aweena: An Indian story of a short tryst in the early days'' (as "Mary Markwell"). Winnipeg: Hart, 1906. Collected editions *''Prairie Pot-pourri'' (as "Mary Markwell"). Winnipeg: Stovel, 1895. Except where noted, bibliographical information courtesy Simon Fraser University,'' and WorldCat.Search results = au:Kate Simpson Hayes, WorldCat, OCLC Online Computer Library Center Inc. Web, Oct. 31, 2016. See also *Saskatchewan poets *List of Canadian poets *Timeline of Canadian poetry References Notes External links ;Poems *"Rough Ben" & "Riel" ;About *Kate Simpson Hayes in the ''Canadian Encyclopedia *Hayes, Kate Simpson (1856-1845) at the Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan *Hayes, Kate Simpson at the Encyclopedia of the Great Plains *Hayes, Kate Simpson at Canada's Early Women Writers Category:1856 births Category:1945 deaths Category:People from New Brunswick Category:Writers from Saskatchewan Category:20th-century poets Category:20th-century women writers Category:Canadian poets Category:Canadian women writers Category:English-language poets Category:Poets Category:Saskatchewan poets